Each year, Orientation and Family Programs and Services awards one family as the Alan and Sally Merten Family of the Year, which is an award that recognizes the important role families play in their student’s experience at Mason.
The Kubic family was recognized as the 2017 Family of the Year at Family Weekend. Grace Kubic, a freshman, neuroscience major, nominated her mother and sisters to receive the award. As an out-of-state student, Grace did not think Mason would be an option, but her family made arrangements and sacrifices to make her dream to attend Mason a reality. Below is an excerpt from Grace’s essay about her family:
“Attending Mason has been nothing but a joy and blessing for my family and me. Of course, there have been struggles, but my family has sacrificed so much for me to be able to be a student of this beautiful university. When we all fell in love with everything Mason had to offer, we, in a sense, knew there was no way I was not going to come here. The thought of not being able to afford the out-of-state tuition and being away from home was taken into consideration, but my love for the university was a priority to my parents. They could sense the joy I had in me from even just thinking or talking about Mason, and to them, that was more important than anything else. Becoming a Patriot was a bold decision for my family, but as my momma says, ‘Where there’s a will, there’s a way.’ I have my family to thank for getting me here and for always pushing for me to stay and follow every single dream, no matter how big or small, including becoming a Mason Patriot.”
Nearly 2,900 students and families participated in this year’s Family Weekend events, making it our largest Family Weekend to date! The weekend was comprised of more than 70 events, and highlights included the George Mason men’s basketball home opener, bus tours across the D.C. metro area, Mason’s Got Talent featuring student performances, 5K run/walk around the beautiful Fairfax campus, and Breakfast and Bingo with the Patriot. Mason families and students also collected 200 pounds of donations for the Patriot Pantry. Watch the Family Weekend recap video at youtube.com/watch?v=Du9xfs7rndE and visit the George Mason Family Programs Facebook page to view photos from the weekend.
We hope your Mason family will join us for next year’s Family Weekend, which will be held November 9-11, 2018!
Rebecca Stauffacher
Coordinator for Family Programs
Orientation and Family Programs and Services